Second Chances.

Chapter Seven

Sakura and Naruto visibly lit up at seeing them.
"I see you guys managed to walk through the village without being screamed at." Sakura commented.

"Well, seeing as how most of the people on the streets being kids right now, I don't think we'll get recognized." The lavender haired woman said, her lips twitched in a ghost of a smile.

Kakashi sighed loudly, laying the paper he had in his hands down onto the wooden desk under his palms, all eyes turning to him immediately.
"Come in, come in." He motioned with his fingers.
"Let's get this discussion started, shall we?."

Konan and Deidara gave each other a look before they stepped inside, letting the door slide close behind them.

Pain, that was the first thing Neji registered as his consciousness returned to him. The last thing he could remember was being impaled through the stomach by one of Madara's stupid black rods, telling Naruto all those sentimental nonsense before falling into darkness.

As far as he knew, the dead couldnt feel any pain. He blinked his eyes open, something that surprised him. The second thing he registered was the soft mattress under his body... Huh... did Spirits have beds wherever they end up after death? If this was the so called heaven everyone keeps talking about then Neji would like to stay here a bit longer.

He blinked up at the perfectly white ceiling above him, letting his eyes adjust to the burn. Wait, why did this place look like the hospital? There was even a fan slowly circulating. What the fudge-

He stopped the swear before he could even complete it in his mind when he felt a shift next to him. Startled, Neji whipped his head to the side, a audible creak was heard which promised neck pain later on (was there ever a later on?).

The pink hair was the first thing his eyes latched onto, the pale skin and dark bags coming afterwards.
Neji was stunned, what was happening? Did this mean Sakura had passed with him on to the afterlife as well? Impossible, she wouldnt allow herself to get killed so easily.

He must have been staring a bit to hard, because Sakura made a small noise at the back of her throat and shifted closer to him, curling around his arm with a sigh as she slept on. Neji was blowed away when he could feel the heat pouring off her body.
That... was not suppose to happen.

His head snapped up when the door to the room he was in slid open. His eyes widen in shock as chocolate brown eyes stared back at him, not a hint of surprise at seeing him laying next to the pink haired girl.

"You're awake. " His brown haired, kunai wielding teammate breathed, a watery smile gracing her lips as she stepped into the room.

Neji was very, very confused, wasnt he supposed to be dead? Forever freed from that wretched curse of a clan, free from those days of slavery.
".. What.." God, was that his voice, he sounded like he swallowed a bucket of nails, and they scraped the flesh of his esophagus on the way down.

Tenten shook her head, moving towards the mini fridge it had at the side of the room, which he didnt even notice by the way. Tenten wasnt even all that bothered that Sakura was currently using his arm as a makeshift pillow.

She handed him a bottle of chilled water to drink and the minute the cool liquid guzzled down his throat, Neji felt as if life had returned to his body.

As he drank, his eyes were locked onto Tenten's figure, her face especially was more defined now, she had lost whatever little baby fat it had there, her lashes were long and touched her cheek every time she so much as blinks and her hair had grown longer.

"Is there something on my face?." Tenten's voice broke him out of his observation, she had an amused little smile on her lips.

"...... You look older." Was what he settled on.

She laughed softly, shaking her head.
"I'm 22 if that's what your wondering about."

What?! How can she be 22 when he clearly remembered being the same age. Neji's body jerked, his arm nearly dislodging Sakura off him.

Seeing his distraught expression, Tenten hurriedly grabbed his arms to stop him from flaying anymore.

"Ugh... Naruto..Sai... five more minutes." Sakura mumbled making both of them pause and stare at the woman, whose eyes continued to remain close.

Tenten sighed.
"I guess its time to explain." She sat back onto the chair.
"Neji, its been years after the war ended and you have been dead for just as long."

The way his eyes widen in disbelief had her snorting.
"No I'm not pulling your leg, it's true.  Sakura here." She sent the sleeping woman a fond look
"Brought you back."

"Brought me back?." He echoed.

"Yeah, Sakura... has a Jutsu she found, that can bring back the dead.. and she's been bringing back the people who matter the most to her." She sighed, caressing the bubblegum pink hair.
"She brought you back yesterday."

"But that's.."

"Impossible?." She snickered.
"Not for her, did you remember the time she cured Kankurou in no time even when the healers couldnt help him? Anything is possible with Sakura, she's incredibly talented. "

Neji let his eyes settled on the woman still snoozing against him, was it even possible for him to adore someone as much as he did in that moment? He had always thought of Sakura as a little sister he never had, her genius mind and quick wit rivaled him and Shikamaru's.

"The only side effect is that after she brings someone back, it always knocks her out for a few days."

"Why?." He asked looking up at his teammate.

"Because she always drains herself of Chakra, that's why." A new voice said, both Tenten and Neji whipped their heads to the door, seeing Itachi and Shisui standing there.

"Who..."

Shisui chuckled, strolling into the room to lean over Neji's bed, a grin on his face.
"Uchiha Shisui, You  could stay I'm the first person my Hime broigut back."

Neji blinked, his pearly eyes flickering from Shisui to Itachi back and forth before it finally settled in that this was reality, that he was once again living, breathing in oxygen, talking to Uchiha's he doesn't even know and having a life changing pink haired woman sleep on his arm.

"... I'm... really alive." He muttered, causing Itachi to chuckle and Tenten to snicker at him.

"You sure are, its takes a bit to get used to though." Shisui said.

Neji smiled slightly before the expression was wiped clean off his face, his eyes widening briefly.

"Neji?." Tenten asked, seeing him freeze up.
"What's wrong?."

It took him a minute to get him bearings together, eyes slowly turning to meet her own, even Itachi and Shisui's eyebrows were frowned in concern.

"..Does that mean I have to go back to how things were? A mere slave to the main branch of the Hyuuga family, to have whatever freedom I have gained to be taken away from me?." He asked, voice quiet and raw with an emotion he couldnt quite name, a ugly feeling building up in his chest at the mere thought of history repeating itself.

Tenten grasped his palm in hers as Shisui laid a heavy hand on his shoulder. They were about to speak up when a soft voice from besides his ear spoke up.

"If Hinata's father thinks he can get his hands on and abuse the people under my protection,  I would like to see him try."

Hearing that, Shisui couldnt help but smirk.

Here we go.